It is clear that a rift still exists between Kyrie Irving and LeBron James, stemming from their days with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Earlier this week, James said he was hurt by comments made by Irving earlier this year and lamented how things just never “aligned” for the two of them despite winning a championship together.
Kendrick Perkins, a former teammate of the duo, has one theory as to why that was the case.
“To me, it almost felt like a sense of jealousy was there on Kyrie’s part,” Perkins, who joined the Cavs for the end of the 2014-15 season, said on The Ringer’s “Real Ones.”
“You have to realize, Kyrie was there, he was their guy before ‘Bron got there, although Cleveland was in the lottery every damn year and Kyrie was the head of the snake and the No. 1 option. When LeBron came, all of a sudden you’re a contender. Well, also LeBron gets special privileges. But who gives a damn? Every team I’ve been on the No. 1 option or the franchise guys get special privileges. But a Robin is not going to get the same privileges of a Batman. It’s just not going to happen.”
According to Perkins, one of the special privileges James was afforded included having his own personal trainer and “medical guy” in the locker room, which Irving also wanted to have.
“He was trying to measure up and be LeBron so bad instead of just basically following his lead,” Perkins said. “All ‘Bron was trying to do was show Kyrie the ropes and take him under his wing.”
This falls in line with what James said on Richard Jefferson’s “Road Trippin’” podcast, that he “only wanted to see him be [the] MVP of our league” and only cared for his success.
James added that he was “hurt” by comments Irving made earlier this year when he appeared to take a shot at James on Kevin Durant’s podcast, saying that for the first time in his career, he has a teammate who can share the responsibility of making the big shot at the end of the game.
It seemed to be a clear knock on James, who has been the best player in the league for the last two decades, although Irving was the one who hit the go-ahead three-pointer in Game 7 of the Cavs’ 2016 NBA Finals championship.
“It was so many times ‘Bron deferred to Kyrie, like, ‘Here man, just take over,’ and was cool with it,” Perkins said. “…Not because he wasn’t clutch, because he knew what he had in Kyrie. Like, ‘go ahead young fella, do your thing.’ So, it’s hard for me to say what really went on, but I know from what I saw that Kyrie probably just got tired of ‘Bron getting special privileges. But he’s an iconic figure, what do you expect?”
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